Ati-Atihan Festival

Ati-atihan Festival is celebrated every third Sunday of January in Kalibo, Aklan in honor
of the town patron Infant Jesus, more popularly known as Santo Nino. Ati-athan means
"making like an Ati" or "pretending like an Ati", the aboriginals of Aklan.
Visitors will definitely get a thrill as Negritos darken their skin with soot or ash and wear
colorful tribal costumes as they dance on the beat of the tribal drums and shout "Hala
Bira!" or "Viva, Sto. Nino!", which kicks off the procession. Before anyone could notice it,
people in the streets shuffle their feet, shake their head, and wave their hands to the
rhythmic beat of the drums.

Sinulog Festival

Like Ati-Atihan Festival, Sinulog Festival every third Sunday of January in Cebu City to
pay respect to the Sto. Nino, the patron saint of the city. It also commemorates the
period when Filipinos welcomed the Roman Catholic religion, as an influence of the
Spanish conquerors.
The week-long celebration is one of the grandest and most elegant festivals in the
Philippines. Millions of devotees from different parts of the country come to Cebu to join
the different activities, such as fluvial procession, concelebrated mass, and street
dancing.
The main event is the street dancing where participants parade to the beat of the drums
and gongs, while wearing dazzling costumes and headdresses. Some street dancers
even paint their body in brilliant colors. There is also a fluvial procession held the day
before the parade.

Dinagyang Festival

Dinagyang Festival is both a cultural and religious festival held in Iloilo City every fourth
Sunday of January. It is considered a cultural celebration to commemorate the arrival of
Malay settlers on the Island of Panay and how the Atis sold the island to these settlers.
Similar to Ati-Atihan and Sinulog Festivals, Dinagyang Festival is also a religious festival
because it gives honor to Sto. Nino, the Infant Jesus.
The Dinagyang Festival started in November 1967 after Rev. Fr. Ambrosio Galindez, a
local Roman Catholic priest, introduced the devotion to Sto. Nino. In 1968, Fr. Sulpicio
Enderez brought a replica image of the Santo Nio de Cebu in Iloilo as a gift to the
parish of San Jose.
Dinagyang Festival consists of three major events -- Ati-Atihan Street Dancing,
Kasadyahan Street Dancing, and Miss Dinagyang. The main highlight of the festival is
the Ati-Atihan Street Dancing, where performers paint their skin with soot and ashes
and wear native costumes made of indigenous materials. They dance in the streets to
the beat of the drum.

Panagbenga Festival

For those who have not gotten enough of the street dancing from the local festivals held
in the month of January, Panagbenga Festival in Baguio City will definitely satisfy their
craving! The festival is celebrated for the entire month of February in Baguio City to
signal the season of blossoming and symbolize the abundant flowers in the city.
Panagbenga Festival gives tourists and visitors a month-long opportunity to get
bewitched with the magnificent blooms, enjoy the wonderful weather, and visit various
exhibits of native products,
The main highlight of Panagbenga Festival is the amazing parade of floats, where each
float is adorned with flowers. Of course, there is also street dancing! But this time, street
dancers wear flower-inspired costumes.

Moriones Festival

Moriones Festival is a week-long religious festival in honor of Saint Longinus, the

Roman soldier who threw a spear on Jesus's side.
Moriones was derived from the word "Morion". which means "visor" or mask, a part of
the medieval Roman armor which covers the face. In relation, Moriones refers to
penitents who wear colorful Roman costumes, painted masks and helmets, and brightlycolored tunics.
Moriones Festival is held every Good Friday of the Lenten Season in Marinduque. The
festival can be witnessed in the towns of Boac, Buenavista, Gasan, Mogpog, and Santa
Cruz as they remember the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. Moriones march around
the town as they search for Longinus, a Roman centurion who is blind in one eye. When
he threw a spear on the side of Jesus, blood fell on his blind eye and his eyesight was
miraculously restored, which led to his conversion to Christianity.

Pahiyas Festival

Every 15th day of May, residents of Lucban, Quezon give thanks to San Isidro de
Labrador, the patron saint of farmers, for a bountiful harvest. An image of San Isidro de
Labrador is paraded around town to assure the farmers of another abundant harvest on
the coming years.
Pahiyas Festival became popular because of the well-decorated houses along the
streets of Lucban using handicrafts, fruits, vegetables, and kiping, those brightlycolored, leaf-shaped, thin rice wafers. Fresh fruits, vegetables, and other native
delicacies that tourists and visitors can taste and enjoy are given away for free. One can
grab everything he can, whether a handful or just a mouthful.

Parada ng Lechon Festival

Parada ng Lechon, literally means parade of roasted pigs, is a different kind of festival
that was introduced in Balayan, Batangas.
Held every 24th of June in celebration with the Feast of St. John the Baptist, the patron
saint of Balayan, the luscious roasted pigs are dressed in various characters and
arranged in a platform before they are paraded around town.
On the other hand, visitors should prepare themselves to get wet, which is a part of
tradition to commemorate the baptism of Jesus in Jordan River by St. John the Baptist.

Kadayawan Festival

Kadayawan Festival, otherwise known as Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival, is a

celebration of life, wealthy culture, bountiful harvest, and comfortable living. Kadayawan
was derived from word "madayaw", a friendly greeting which means either good,
beautiful, or valuable.
According to history, the different ethnic tribes in Davao residing at the foot of Mount
Apo would assemble and perform a ritual to the gods, especially to "Manama", the
Supreme Being, for a bountiful harvest. Flowers, fruits, vegetables, rice, corn, and
various farming tools were placed on mats as villagers give their respect and
thanksgiving for the abundant harvest featuring singing, dancing and offerings to their
divine protectors.
Times have changed but the thanksgiving tradition is still practiced. It has flourished and
transformed into an annual festival of thanksgiving now known as "Kadayawan sa
Dabaw" Festival. Celebrated every third week of August in Davao City, the Kadayawan
Festival is highlighted with street dancing, floral float parade, dance festival, band
competition, beauty pageant, and a lot more.

Masskara Festival

Masskara was derived from two different words -- "mass", English word for people, and
"kara". Spanish word which means face. The word masskara was formulated by Ely
Santiago, an artist who showed in his artworks the various faces of Negrenses after
going through different crises.
Held every third week of October in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental, Masskara Festival
was organized to add festivity and color to the annual Bacolod City Charter Day
celebration, which is held every 19th of October. It adopted the smiling mask, the
symbol of the city where it based its name "The City of Smiles", to emphasize the happy
spirit of Negrenses, despite the periodic economic recession in the sugar industry.
The 20-day celebration is a festivity of non-stop merry-making, street dancing, dining,
and beer drinking. The main highlight of the Masskara Festival includes parade, maskmaking contest, disco king and queen competition, and a lot more. During the parade,
participants wear painted masks and colorful costumes as they dance and stride in the
streets. Masskara Festival is always considered to be the most colorful and magnificent
festival all over the world.

Higantes Festival

Celebrated every 23rd of November in Angono, Rizal in honor of San Clemente, the
town's patron saint, Higantes Festival is considered to be one of the most popular and
most colorful festivals in the Philippines. The image of San Clemente is paraded around
town, followed by the higantes wearing native costumes and wooden sandals.
Higantes is derived from the word "higante", which literally means "giant". The main
highlight of the festival is the procession of colorful giant paper-mache effigies, each
standing at 10-12 feet.
On the day of the feast, residents line the streets waiting for the procession of the image
of San Clemente as it is immediately followed by a fire truck that sprinkles water to the
people. The locals believe that they would receive blessings when they get wet during
the procession.